To compare remodeling proposals fairly, put them on the same scope before you look at the price. Line up what each bid includes and excludes, which items are carried as allowances rather than specified selections, who pulls and pays for the permits, and how each one handles the payment schedule, change orders, warranty and lien waivers. Once those match, the difference in price starts to mean something.
This guide walks through each part of a proposal, with the Chicago and Illinois rules that apply as of November 2026. Whether you choose Areté or another firm for Chicago design-build remodeling, the same comparison holds.
Why Remodeling Bids for the Same Project Differ
The Federal Trade Commission’s home improvement advice is to get several written estimates and not automatically choose the lowest bidder. Its 2014 Hiring a Contractor guide adds: when prices differ, ask for an explanation. Most gaps come from a few places:
- Scope. One bid includes work the other leaves out, or describes it too loosely to tell.
- Allowances. A low allowance for tile or fixtures makes a bid look cheaper today and costs more when you choose.
- Exclusions. Permits, drawings, demolition or final cleaning may sit outside one price and inside another.
- Specifications. Bids for “new cabinets” can describe very different products.
Give every bidder the same starting point: your goals, your timeline and your real budget. Our post on what not to tell your Chicago contractor explains why holding back the real number produces proposals that are hard to compare.
Compare the Scope Line by Line
Put the proposals side by side and mark every line: included, excluded or unclear. The FTC guide says a contract should carry a detailed list of all materials, with each product’s color, model, size and brand, and should state what the contractor will and will not do, down to whether cleanup and trash hauling are in the price.
What Is Included and What Is Excluded
Look for these items in each proposal, and ask about any that are missing:
- demolition and disposal;
- protection of floors, finishes and shared spaces;
- drawings and design work, if your project needs them;
- permits and permit fees;
- electrical, plumbing and mechanical work, and who performs it;
- patching and painting after the trades finish;
- final cleaning.
An exclusion is not a problem in itself; finding one after you sign is. Ask each bidder to list its exclusions in writing.
Allowances Versus Specified Selections
An allowance is a budget placeholder for something you will choose later. The FTC guide says that if some materials will be chosen later, the contract should state who is responsible for choosing each item and how much money is budgeted for it. A specified selection names the product itself: brand, model, size and color.
Allowances are useful when you have not chosen your finishes yet. They are also where 2 proposals can look alike and be very different. If one bid carries a modest tile allowance and another a realistic one, the first looks cheaper until you choose your tile.
To compare allowances:
- list every allowance in each proposal, by item and amount;
- ask what each one assumes: a product level, a quantity, and whether installation is included;
- ask what happens if your selection costs more or less, and how the difference is documented and billed;
- use specified selections wherever you already know what you want.
For help setting a realistic number in the first place, see the ultimate guide to budgeting for a home remodel.
Permits: Who Pulls Them and Who Pays
In Chicago, a permit is required before most construction, demolition and repair work. Every proposal should say which permits your project needs, who applies, and whether the fees are in the price.
Who applies depends on the permit:
- Express permits. The city’s Express Permit Program, launched in November 2023, lets owners and the contractors who work with them obtain permits to repair or replace existing features and for specific small projects.
- Plan-based permits. Most construction and rehabilitation work needs plans prepared by an Illinois-licensed architect or engineer, and only an Illinois-licensed architect or engineer or a City-licensed expediter can apply.
The FTC guide says a contract should state the contractor’s obligation to get all necessary permits, and names a contractor who asks you to get them as a warning sign. Skipping a permit is expensive: when the city discovers unpermitted work, it issues a stop work order, charges a penalty of $1,000 or more and, in most cases, triples the permit fee (city FAQ).
Compare the Timeline
The FTC guide lists an estimated start and completion date among a contract’s basic terms. Ask what each schedule assumes: when your selections must be final, how long permit review is expected to take, and what happens if an ordered item arrives late. A shorter timeline is an advantage only if those assumptions hold, so also ask who will own the schedule day to day.
Tie the Payment Schedule to Milestones
The FTC guide offers 3 pieces of payment advice that apply to any remodel:
- do not pay cash;
- try to limit your down payment (some state laws limit it; your state or local consumer agency can tell you the rule);
- try to make payments during the project contingent on completion of defined amounts of work, so that if the work falls behind, the payments do too.
Its current consumer page adds: never pay the full cost up front, and never make the final payment until the work is done and you are satisfied with it.
Compare schedules by what each payment is tied to. “Cabinets installed” or “rough-in inspection passed” is a milestone you can verify. “Week 4” is a date, not a milestone. Check, too, how allowance overages and approved change orders are billed.
For Homes of 6 Units or Fewer
The Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act applies only to single-family homes and buildings with 6 or fewer units (definitions). For work over $1,000, the contractor must give you a written contract or work order to sign before work begins, stating the total cost. The consumer pamphlet the Act requires lists the schedule and method of payment, including the down payment, later payments and final payment, among a contract’s basic terms (815 ILCS 513/20). It does not cover a typical high-rise condominium, so ask for the same detail anyway.
How Each Proposal Handles Change Orders
The FTC guide defines a change order as a written authorization to the contractor to make a change or addition to the work in the original contract, one that could affect cost and schedule, and says the contract should explain how change orders are handled. Changes are normal, especially once walls are open in an older Chicago home. Compare how each proposal answers 4 questions:
- How is a change priced?
- Who can approve it, and in what form?
- Is its effect on the schedule stated before you sign it?
- When is it billed?
If a change goes beyond what the building permit allows, the city requires an additional or revised permit first.
Warranty, Insurance and License
Check the Chicago License Before the Price
Chicago requires a general contractor license for most building construction, alteration, repair and demolition work, and a contractor needs it before even preparing or submitting a bid or proposal for work that requires a building permit. The license is valid for 1 year from issuance and is automatically inactivated if the contractor’s insurance policy expires.
The city’s Contractor License Lookup lists currently licensed trade contractors and those with recently expired or inactivated licenses. Its list of active general contractors shows each license’s expiration date and insurance expiration date. Check that the business name matches the name on the proposal.
Insurance
The FTC guide says contractors should carry personal liability, workers’ compensation and property damage coverage. Ask for copies of the certificates and make sure they are current, or, the FTC warns, you could be held liable for injuries and damage during the project. Ask the same of subcontractors. In a condominium, ask building management what it requires before work begins.
Warranty
The FTC guide says the contract should describe the warranties on materials and workmanship, name who honors each one (contractor, distributor or manufacturer), and state the warranty period and any limitations. Compare these side by side, in writing.
Lien Waivers and the Illinois Sworn Statement
Under the Illinois Mechanics Lien Act, a contractor who improves your property has a lien on it for the amount due. Section 5 makes it the contractor’s duty to give you, and your duty to require, a written statement under oath before you pay, listing everyone furnishing labor, services or materials and the amount due to each. On an owner-occupied single-family home, the contractor must also give you a printed notice of this requirement, in the contract or before your first payment.
Section 32 adds that a payment made without exercising the owner’s rights under the Act, the sworn statement among them, is not regarded as rightfully made as against an unpaid subcontractor, laborer or supplier. That is why the sworn statement belongs inside the payment schedule, not after it.
The FTC guide adds: do not make the final payment or sign an affidavit of final release until you are satisfied and know that subcontractors and suppliers have been paid, and ask the contractor and every subcontractor and supplier for a lien release or lien waiver.
So ask each bidder: will you provide a sworn statement before each payment, and lien waivers as the work is paid for? For your own situation, the state’s consumer pamphlet suggests consulting an attorney.
Red Flags in a Remodeling Proposal
Drawn from the FTC and the Illinois consumer pamphlet, these should stop the comparison:
- a demand for cash, or for full payment up front;
- a request that you obtain the building permits;
- pressure to decide immediately;
- a suggestion that you borrow from a lender the contractor knows;
- a contract with blank spaces, or terms you do not fully understand;
- no references when you ask for them.
Add 3 checks of your own: a price far below the others that the contractor cannot explain, allowances with no amounts, and a license or insurance date you cannot find in the city’s lookup.
A Side-by-Side Comparison Checklist
| Item | What to compare |
|---|---|
| Scope | Every line marked included, excluded or unclear |
| Allowances | Item, amount and what each one assumes |
| Selections | Brand, model, size and color where known |
| Permits | Which permits, who applies, fees in or out |
| Timeline | Start and completion dates, and their assumptions |
| Payments | Down payment, milestones and final payment |
| Change orders | Written, priced and approved, with the schedule effect |
| License and insurance | Chicago license current; certificates current |
| Warranty | Length, coverage and who honors it |
| Liens | Sworn statement and lien waivers with payments |
How Design-Build Changes the Comparison
With design-build, the people who design your space work alongside the people who build it. Selections can be made during design and priced as they are chosen, so more of a proposal can be specified rather than carried as allowances. That makes it easier to see exactly what you are paying for.
Areté has offered design-build remodeling in Chicago since 2002, with design and construction under one roof and an in-house interior design team. Every project is run by a Project Manager. Areté is rated 4.9 on Google across 180 reviews (as of October 2026), and Qualified Remodeler named the firm to its Top 500 list.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I choose the lowest remodeling bid?
Not by default. The FTC advises against automatically choosing the lowest bidder and suggests asking why prices differ. The gap is often in scope, allowances or exclusions.
What is an allowance in a remodeling proposal?
A budget set aside for an item you will choose later, such as tile or light fixtures. The FTC says the contract should state who chooses each item and how much is budgeted for it.
How should a remodeling payment schedule be structured?
Keep the down payment limited, tie later payments to defined amounts of completed work, and hold the final payment until the work is done to your satisfaction. Avoid paying cash.
Who pulls the building permit in Chicago?
It depends on the permit. Only an Illinois-licensed architect or engineer or a City-licensed expediter can apply for a plan-based permit. For Express Permit work, the proposal should say who applies. The FTC treats a contractor who asks you to get the permits as a warning sign.
Does the Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act cover high-rise condos?
No. It covers single-family homes and buildings with 6 or fewer units, and it does not apply to repairs in buildings with more than 6 units. Ask for the same written detail anyway.
Gathering proposals for a remodel? Schedule a consultation with Areté, bring this checklist, and ask us every question on it.
